Gold security questions---new gold investor.

[Bubbaboy]

I'm new to gold investing. I've read a couple books on gold investing but they left out some practical stuff. Can the bank open your safe deposit box without the renter being there? Is there a risk of it disappearing out of there?

Do most gold owners have the physical gold?---I mean what is the point of having a receipt for it stored by somebody else? Doesn't that defeat the purpose? I read about it in a book on gold investing, but how many people actually do this?

Is it necessary for the dealer to know your name? Wouldn't it be smart to pay in cash and not give a name? .....But how much would the typical seller (coin collecting place for example) have to sell at one time typically and would they be hesitant to deal in cash in the 10 to 100 thousand dollar range?

Can you get a discount in the transaction fee (per coin) if you buy a large number of coins at one, like 100 Gold Eagles for example/

[nanaimogold]

I'm new to gold investing.

You could buy shares in a mining company, they could buy more mining tools to dig more gold, that would be an investment.

Buying gold itself is not really an investment. It's a good way to save. Bars and coins in a safe will never grow larger. You will likely have to pay for the safekeeping, so you will actually lose some. You can win against other hard goods like real estate, but that's because real estate is overpriced. Gold remains pretty steady.

I've read a couple books on gold investing but they left out some practical stuff.

What are the titles of the books you read? I wonder if you are getting bad advise. The only time I ever hear talk of investing in gold, it turns out to be pyramid gambling using DGC as payment processor. We see a lot of that around here.

Can the bank open your safe deposit box without the renter being there? Is there a risk of it disappearing out of there?

Generally speaking yes, a court can order a safety deposit box opened. It can be done with boxholder absent. A locksmith is hired to drill the lock out if the holder does not surrender the key.

Do most gold owners have the physical gold?---I mean what is the point of having a receipt for it stored by somebody else? Doesn't that defeat the purpose? I read about it in a book on gold investing, but how many people actually do this?

There are pros and cons to each approach. I think most gold bugs have both metal in hand and pooled accounts.

In your hand you can hide it and be most certain to keep it. Costs: manufacture, shipping, insurance, storage and assay on return. Not so easy as pools to get in and out of.

Metal in pool avoids those above costs. It's easy to trade in and out of. Some, like e-gold can spend directly to other account holders. That is useful in business. The downside is the risk of confiscation by government or other sort of theft. Some pools are safer in jurisdiction and operation than others. It depends on your needs. There are lots of choices.

Is it necessary for the dealer to know your name? Wouldn't it be smart to pay in cash and not give a name? .....But how much would the typical seller (coin collecting place for example) have to sell at one time typically and would they be hesitant to deal in cash in the 10 to 100 thousand dollar range?

We don't know where you live. Laws vary. Some banks will photocopy ID for the smallest gold coin sale. Some private shops will accept large cash and not even ask names. Your counry has some reporting law I expect. you might check into that.

Can you get a discount in the transaction fee (per coin) if you buy a large number of coins at one, like 100 Gold Eagles for example

Sure, you could expect a discount. Also, a 100 oz bar would be cheaper, but maybe not as useful to you.

[Bubbaboy]

Nanaimogold, thanks much for the very detailed response. You asked which books I read: "The ABC's of Gold Investing" and "The Collapse of the Dollar and How to Profit from It" (despite title it's all about gold). You probably don't need them but I thought they were both very good.

I'm very surprised you haven't heard more talk of gold investing. For example, you can't turn on a talk radio show, without getting 4 or 5 commercials an hour from gold dealers.

[Bubbaboy]

Nanamigold, thanks for the great response. The books I read are "The ABC's of Gold Investing" and "The Collapse of the Dollar and How to Profit from It"

[nanaimogold]

Well, I disagree with the terminology. Storing value - saving your money - in gold is not an investment. The bars and coins cannot get larger sitting in the vault.

Fiat currency can only lose value as governments borrow more of it into existence. So, to consider that gold is going up is backwards logic. Dollars is actually going down. Gold, over the long term, stays about the same in value.

The classic example is the one ounce suit price. Throughout history, since antiquity, one ounce of gold has been the price of a good suit of clothes. 2000 years ago Romans were paying one ounce for a good suit.

If you put aside $900 USD now to buy a new suit in ten years time, chances are you will get only jeans and running shoes because the value of dollars has gone down.

One ounce of gold put away will get you an Armani ten years from now, just as it would today.

Storing your money in gold is a damn good idea, especially now. Wartime always hurts fiat money. Westerners are further in debt today than ever before. Some sage commentors expect a serious economic crisis. You read that in Turk's book.

Many times before paper money has become cheaper than firewood.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ation-1923.jpg
Inflation 1923-24: A German woman feeding a stove with currency notes, which burn longer than the amount of firewood they can buy.